Most of us know someone who has mental illness. For some of us, it is a loved one or a family member. For others, it may be a friend, classmate or co-worker. People who suffer everything from depression and bipolar disorder, to severe anxiety and even schizophrenia.

Some of us live closely with such folks, responsible for their care and their very lives.

Sadly, there just aren’t a lot of resources or support for such caregivers. What information and support that is out there is often lacking. I hope this blog by Tamara Hill, MS can change things.

This blog is primarily about the challenges facing family, friends, and caregivers who have a family member with an untreated or severe mental illness.

Here’s an example Tamara will talk more about:

In the state of PA (where I am), it is VERY difficult to get an individual with a severe, untreated mental illness involuntarily committed if that individual has not threatened harm to him/herself or another person. In the case of John Shick at Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic (the man who opened fire on staff in 2012), he was turned away from the hospital a day prior because there weren’t enough beds. Assisted Outpatient Treatment (AOT) laws may have prevented the incident.

Tamara’s new blog is intended to help offer social service resources and inform family, caregivers, and friends about challenges and holes in the system. Tamara says, “I will use a lot of videos, news reports, and questions to stimulate discussion.”

“I’m of the firm belief that knowledge is empowering and many families lack knowledge, which leads to a lack of empowerment,” notes Tamara.

I couldn’t agree more. Please give Tamara a warm Psych Central welcome over on her blog today, Caregivers, Family & Friends.

Dr. John Grohol is the founder & CEO of Psych Central. He is an author, researcher and expert in mental health online, and has been writing about online behavior, mental health and psychology issues -- as well as the intersection of technology and human behavior -- since 1992. Dr. Grohol sits on the editorial board of the journal Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking and is a founding board member and treasurer of the Society for Participatory Medicine.

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    Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 18 Jan 2013
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